lb INTRODUCTION
ENEATH THE BUSTLING CITY OF WATERDEEP,
a beho lde r crime lord keeps tabs on everyone
and everything-or so the beholder thinks.
Known as Xanathar, t hi s bizarre being be-
lieves it can gather information o n everything
in the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS multiverse.
The be holde r desires to know it all! But no
matter what the be holder learns and what treasures it
acquires, its most prized possession in all the multi-
verse re m a ins its goldfis h , Sylgar.
The firs t major rules expans ion to the fifth e dition of
D&D, Xanathar's Guide to Everything provides a wealth
of new opti o ns for the game. Xanathar might not be able
to realize its dream to know everything, but th is book
does delve into every major part of the game: adventur-
e rs, their adventures, and the magic they wield.USING THIS BOOK
Written for both players and Dungeon Masters, this
book offers options to enhance campaigns in any world,
whether you're adventuring in the Forgotten Realms ,
a n othe r official D&D setting, or a world o f your own
c reati on. T he options here build on the officia l rules
contained within th e Player's Handbook, the Monster
Manual, and the Dungeon Master's Guide. Think of t hi s
book as the companion to those volumes. It builds on
their foundation, exploring pathways first laid in those
publicati ons. Nothing he re in is required for a D &D cam-
paig n-this is not a fourth core rulebook- but we hope it
will provide you new ways to enjoy t he game.
Chapter 1 offers character options that expand on
those offered in the Player's Handbook. Chapter 2 is a
toolkit for the DM that provides new resources fo r run-
ning the game and designing adventures, all of it build-
ing on the Monster Manual and t he Dungeon Master's
Guide. C hapter 3 presents new spells for player charac-
ters and spellcasting monsters to unleash.
Appendix A provides g uida nce on running a share d
campa ign , similar to the activities s taged by the D&D
Adventure rs Leagu e, and appendix B conta ins a host of
tables tha t a llow you to quic kly gene rate na mes for the
c ha racte rs in your D&D stories.
As you peruse the many options herein , you'll come
across observatio ns from Xanathar itself. Like the
be holde r's roving mind, your reading will take you to
places in the game familiar and n ew. May you e nj oy
the journey!UNEART H E D ARCANA
Much of the material in this book originally appeared in
Unearthed Arcana, a series of online articles we publish
to explore rules that might officially become part of the
game. Some Unearthed Arcana offerings don't end up
resonating with fans and are set aside fo r the time being.
The Unearthed Arcana materia l that inspired the options
in the following chapters was well received a nd, thanks to
feedback from thousands of you, has been refined into the
official forms presented here.INTRODUCTION